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State workers, State House employees with state equipment delivered 20 "handy packs" of beer to Sen. Jan Yagi Buen's office for a $25-a-plate fund-raiser tomorrow at Yong Sing Chinese restaurant.
resources used for
senator’s beer
delivery
Sen. Buen says it was a mistake;
the beer will be used for
her fund-raiserBy Richard Borreca
Star-BulletinBuen (D, Maui-Molokai-Lanai) said yesterday's delivery was all a mistake, while Rep. Cynthia Thielen, who saw the delivery and complained, called it "totally wrong."
Thielen (R, Kailua) complained to House sergeant-at-arms Kevin Ebata after she saw Frank Arakaki, assistant sergeant-at-arms, unload the beer from his van and give it to two waiting state House workers, who put it on a dolly from the House and moved it to Buen's second-floor Capitol office.
"We are using state employees and state equipment to move beer to a fund-raiser. This is just totally wrong," Thielen said.
Buen said she was "totally shocked" when the beer arrived at her office. "This was a miscommunications and I am taking full responsibility for it.
"It was supposed to go to my friend's place in Kaimuki," she said. "I didn't know it was to be delivered to the office. Since it was delivered here, I take full responsibility.
"I do not do this kind of campaigning. I am here to do legislative work and not campaigning," she said. Buen said her husband was supposed to have picked up the beer.
Ebata said Arakaki had filled out a temporary leave of absence form for the time he was helping Buen.
"Somehow it happened," Ebata said. "It shouldn't have happened to begin with, and it showed bad judgment on his (Arakaki's) part."
Dan Mollway, executive director of the state Ethics Commission, said state law prohibits campaigning in public offices or on state property.
"The state Ethics Commission prohibits the use of state personnel, state facilities or state time for campaign purposes," he said.
He said he couldn't talk about a specific case but that, in general, state workers should not be using state materials on state time to help any politician.
Ebata said there is a yearly reminder to legislative workers that they are not supposed to help with political chores while working for the state.
He was also concerned about the presence of the beer in the Capitol because, according to state regulations, alcohol is not permitted in the building.
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